THE ASS. 



225 



persons who undertake to manage them. 

 They have all the swiftness of horses, and 

 neither declivities nor precipices can retard 

 their career. When attacked, they defend 

 themselves with their heels and mouth with 

 such activity, that, without slackening their 

 pace, they often maim their pursuers. But 

 the most remarkable property in these crea- 

 tures is, that, after carrying their first load, 

 their celerity leaves them, their dangerous fe- 

 rocity is lost, and they soon contract the stu- 

 pid look and dulness peculiar to the assinine 

 species. It is also observable, that these crea- 

 tures will not permit a horse to live among 

 them. They always feed together; and if a 

 horse happens to stray into the place where 

 they graze, they all fall upon him ; and, with- 

 out giving him the liberty of flying, they bite 

 and kick him till they leave him for dead upon 

 the spot. 1 



Such is this animal in its natural state, swift, 

 fierce, and formidable : but, in the state of 

 tameness,the ass presents a very different pic- 

 ture ; the moment his native liberty is repres- 

 sed, he seems entirely to give up all claims 

 to freedom ; and he assumes a patience and 

 submission even humbler than his situation. 

 He is, in a state of tameness, the most gentle 

 and quiet of all animals. He suffers with con- 

 stancy, and, perhaps, with courage, all the ill- 

 treatment that cruelty and caprice are pleased 

 to inflict. He is temperate with regard to the 

 quantity and the quality of his provision. He 

 is contented with the most neglected weeds ; 

 and makes his humble repast upon what the 

 horse and other animals leave behind. If he 

 gives the preference to any vegetable, it is to 

 the plantain; for which he is often seen to neg- 

 lect every other herb in the pasture : but he 

 is chiefly delicate with respect to his water; 

 he drinks only at the clearest brooks, and 

 chiefly those to which he has been accustomed. 

 He drinks as soberly as he eats ; and never, 

 like the horse, dips his nose into the stream. 

 As he is seldom saddled, he frequently rolls 

 himself upon the grass ; and lies down, for 

 this purpose, as often as he has an opportu- 

 nity, without minding what becomes of his 

 burden. He never rolls, like the horse, in 

 the mud ; he even fears to wet his feet ; and 



UJloa, vol. i. p. 316. 



turns out of his way to avoid the dirty parts 

 of a road. 



When very young, the ass is sprightly, and 

 even tolerably handsome ; but he soon loses 

 these qualifications, either by age or bad 

 treatment, and he becomes slow, stupid, and 

 headstrong. He seems to show no ardour, 

 except for the female, having been often 

 known to die after the covering. The she- 

 ass is not less fond of her young than the male 

 is of her; and we are assured that she will 

 cross fire and water to protect or rejoin it. 

 This animal is sometimes not less attached 

 to his owner; by whom he is too often abu- 

 sed. He scents him at a distance, and dis- 

 tinguishes him from others in a crowd ; he 

 knows the ways he has passed, and the pla- 

 ces where he inhabits. 



When overloaded, the ass shows the injus- 

 tice of his master, by hanging down his head 

 and lowering his ears ; when he is too hard 

 pressed, he opens his mouth and draws back 

 his lips, in a very disagreeable manner. If 

 his eyes are covered he will not stir a step ; 

 and, if he is laid down in such a manner, that 

 one eye is covered with the grass while the 

 other is hidden with a stone, or whatever is 

 next at hand, he will continue fixed in the 

 same situation, and he will not so much as 

 attempt to rise to free himself from those slight 

 impediments. He walks, trots, and gallops, 

 like a horse ; but, although he sets out very 

 freely at first, yet he is soon tired ; and then 

 no beating will make him mend his pace. 

 It is in vain that his unmerciful rider exerts 

 his whip or his cudgel; the poor little animal 

 bears it all with patience, and without a groan; 

 and, conscious of his own imbecility, does not 

 offer even to move. 



Notwithstanding the stupid heaviness of his 

 air, he may be educated with as much ease 

 as any other animal ; and several have been 

 brought up to perform, and exhibit as a show. 

 In general, however, the poor animal is entirely 

 neglected. Man despises this humble useful 

 creature, whose efforts are exerted to please 

 him, and whose services are too cheaply pur- 

 chased. The horse is the only favourite, and 

 upon him alone all expense and labour are 

 bestowed. He is fed, attended, and stab ed, 

 while the ass is abandoned to the cruelty of 

 the lowest rustics, or even to the sport of chil- 



